The idea of XML Schema Component XML (SCX) is to make XML Schema accessible to XML technologies. Even though the syntax for XML Schema is based on XML, the data model (the XML Schema Components) is surprisingly different from the XML syntax, and for all but trivial tasks, using XPath or other XML technologies to access and analyze an XML Schema are very hard to use. SCX defines an XML syntax which is as faithful to the components as possible, so that working with the components can be done by using more or less straightforward XPath expressions.

In addition to the SCX syntax, we also provide a function library written in XSLT 2.0, which can be used for more complex functionalities. This function library is intended as a foundation for the XML Schema Path Language (SPath), but it can also be used as a standalone function library for working with XML Schemas in XSLT 2.0